


Recess

by GreatValueJellyBean



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Elementary School, F/F, High School, Human AU, I’m still bad at tags don’t judge, Lapis is a savage, this is really just a bunch of drabbles and stories that all connect I guess
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-06
Updated: 2019-01-14
Packaged: 2019-09-12 20:11:15
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16878429
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GreatValueJellyBean/pseuds/GreatValueJellyBean
Summary: Lapis is sitting in her usual spot during recess when an unfamiliar site grabs her attention.





	1. Fifth Grade: Recess

Lapis let out a sigh, stretching, her back giving a nice crack before she relaxed and went back to leaning on the cold fence.

Most kids called her crazy for not liking recess. It didn’t really bother her, nor did she ever bother giving a reason for her “dislike” of it. The more people who saw her as being weird or strange or whatever, the less people she had to put up with on a day to day basis. It was a win-win in her mind.

Honestly though, she didn’t actually dislike recess. Of course, she never  _did anything_ , but that was why she actually liked it. She didn’t  _have_ to do anything.

Sure, most of the time she wouldn’t be able to do anything even if she wanted to, but on days like today, where she hadn’t done anything to get in trouble, she simply sat against the fence due to the comfort of it. She was sitting in  _her_ spot. She got to think, and relax, and for one of the few times in the day, got to rejoice in the fact she wouldn’t be bothered by other kids who were too busy playing in the dirt to even give her a glimpse.

_Although, she did hate all the screaming, but beggars can’t be choosers, right?_

Lapis looked over to her right, staring through the fence and into the basket ball court. She watched as many of the “athletic” boys passed the ball back and forth, constantly shooting and never actually making hoops. She rolled her eyes, knowing full well that the group of girls in the corner of the court were talking about the boys, most likely about which one was the cutest, and all the other gross stuff.

She continued watching what the boys would have probably called a “game”, knowing full well that it couldn’t be considered as such due to the fact that none of them would ever actually make a basket.

She decided to keep score of something else, keeping a mental tally for every time a kid got hit in the face with a ball after failing to catch it, or due to standing directly under the hoop. She got to 8 before she finally got bored.

She turned her attention to the big oak tree in front of her on the other side of the playground. 

The tree was huge, and for the few times she actually  _did_ stray away from the fence, the tree was where she went. It was one of the few places out of the all the teachers view, being the teachers would always stand in the middle of the playground, never going anywhere else until it was time to go back in. 

She couldn’t see it but she knew well that there was most likely a group of boys “illegally” trading Pokémon cards. Either that or some kid was carving their name into the tree. It was probably a fifty-fifty shot.

Behind the tree and out of view wasn’t the only place kids would loiter though, for the tree was the biggest source of shade. Most kids in her grade didn’t bother actually “playing” anymore. Instead they flocked to the tree like a pack of seagulls going after food left out on the beach dock.

You had the preppy girls, who sat in the grass or leaned up against the fence, too cool to talk to anyone other then those in their niche, and too pretty to do anything else.

You had the jocks, who would fight and joke around with each other, having no remorse for anyone who would interrupt their charades, especially the teachers (also being why the teachers never bothered going towards the tree anymore).

You had the gymnasts, mainly being girls, who would do flips and cartwheels, splits and handstands. Lapis always liked watching them in the event one of them slipped up or ended up ramming into another kid. It was good entertainment.

You also had some of the little kids, who would run and maneuver around all the big kids and the tree, screaming at each other when one kid would get tagged and lie, saying otherwise.

Anyone else would either be minding their own business. Drawing in the dirt, talking to friends in their own little groups too unimportant compared to the others to bother getting a name. 

The only group ever missing from the tree was the bad kids, confined to sitting against the fence, watching the other kids enjoy their “freedom”. Lapis still didn’t mind. She still liked sitting in her spot. Still liked laughing when the teachers said she had to sit against the fence, knowing full well they understood she actually liked it, and knowing they couldn’t actually do anything else to “punish” her.

Lapis turned her attention to the last area in the playground, being the huge fort/jungle gym amalgamation. 

She always started off by looking at the swings, guessing as to which group of kids would snag them today. 

It was usually one of two options:

Preppy girls who got bored of sitting in the grass, instead choosing to steal the swings and not actually moving,

or,

it would be rowdy boys, who would swing as high as they could manage before jumping off to see how far they could go, doing “tricks” that more resembled a flightless bird then something actually impressive. Occasionally one would inevitably get a mouth full of wood chips when they failed to stick the landing.

Lapis sighed, seeing the swings taken up by the girls today. No entertainment from the swings this recess.

Not even the baby swings had anyone in them.

Sometimes, some kid would get the idea of climbing into one, only to be  _surprised_ when they were suddenly stuck in the contraption not made for their own size. 

Lapis wondered how people could be that stupid, yet it still granted a source of laughter, watching the unfortunate pay for their own dumb decisions.

Lapis did plenty of stupid things, and sure, she payed for them, but in the end, she didn’t do anything  _that_ blatantly dumb. Whatever she did would often result in her just losing tv privileges or something, which didn’t bother her for the sake it just meant she would end up sleeping more. A fair trade, frankly. Cartoons were starting to get boring to be honest.

She looked back to the castle, being the realm of all the little kids. Running up and down, all around. Kids crawling up the slides at the same time someone would go down. Crying because they slid down the pole and it hurt their hand. Playing tag and running around the support beams. Role playing. Whatever interested them on a given day, really. Sometimes it would be all of the above and be complete chaos.

You'd think that would mean entertainment.  _Wrong._  

What it meant was a bigger headache.

Thankfully that was not today. She already had one brewing from gym class. Today, the kids were role playing, meaning, not as much shouting, and instead, more fighting with sticks.

 _That_ , was entertainment.

She watched them for a while before that too became boring. She decided to look over at the sign in the corner to her left.

The sign was another place out of sight, although not a place kids would go to hide. It was more so a place for the weirder kids.

Kid had to go to the bathroom? Take a leak behind it.

Kid has to pick their nose? Sign, if they weren’t too young to not care about public image.

Kids never seemed to care that the sign faced the road though. Drivers and adults? Eh, they can view everything.  _Can’t let the other kids see me itch my junk, though._

Today though, there wasn’t anyone doing anything weird.

That’s not to say there wasn’t  _anything_ strange, just not anything usual for what happened in that corner.

Today, there was just a kid sitting with their back against it, staring out at the road.

It wouldn’t have caught Lapis’ interest had it not been for the fact she didn’t recognize the kid. 

The girl was small, meaning she was either younger or just one of the few kids who hadn’t yet got their growth spurt, like Lapis had.

She had messy light blonde hair, a nonsensical haircut that was shaped into a sort of triangle. Lapis couldn’t make sense of it but mentally agreed on one thing:

The girl  _must_ have to use a gallon of hair gel to keep that fro the way it is.

Maybe it was immature, but the rest of the playground had gone boring already, so Lapis decided she would just ask the girl. 

She stood up, once again stretching, patting her legs to remove any dirt or grass that had gotten on her jeans, and began to stroll over.

 

As she got closer she thought she could hear sniffling. She wasn’t exactly sure but as she continued to get closer, what she thought she heard was indeed the case. 

The small girl was shaking, holding herself, sniffling as though she had just stopped crying. The sight made the girl look even  _smaller._

Lapis wasn’t one to be support. Not because she didn’t really have anyone in her life who would need or ask for it, but also because she had never really gotten any herself.

She could’ve backed away. Gone back to her spot at the fence and just ignored the girl, due to the fact Lapis’ presence was still unknown, but, something told Lapis to not do that.

She didn’t know what was wrong. She didn’t know how to be a shoulder. She didn’t even know if she could be helpful, but, something told her she should try?

Lapis Lazuli. A girl who kept to herself, and was often a stone cold bully of sorts. Never having much regard for others and doing whatever she wanted purely because she could.

That was what people viewed her as.

And yet here she was, considering to help and reach out to some kid she didn’t even know and had never seen before.

She was shocking herself, even.

She sighed, taking a few more steps forward before squating down. She slowly moved her hand to lightly touch the girls shoulder, soliciting a quick flinch from the girl, her presence now being known.

The girl put her head down as if to shrink down even further.

_Welp, no turning back now, she knows you’re here._

She thought real hard for a moment of what to say. It had to be something smart and thoughtful, probably. Something captivating and showing the small girl that she was there to be supportive. To listen.

”Hey.”

_Flawless._

Well. Maybe? 

The girl sniffled again.

”H..hello...”

”You uh, okay?”

”I’m f-fine.”

Welp, guess that’s that? She said she was good? 

Lapis wanted to just take that answer and shrug, walk off, and say “I tried”, but still, just like how she couldn’t tell what had compelled her to even talk to the girl, something was telling her to get to the bottom of this girls distraught appearance.

Lapis continued to sit there, not sure what else to say. She got up and walked over to sit against the sign next to the girl.

The two sat in silence for a while before the girl spoke up. 

“W-why are you h..here.”

Lapis turned to look at the girl, who still had yet to lift her head back up. 

“Well, you look upset. Or atleast sound it. I just wanted to make sure you’re like, okay, I guess.”

The girl finally raised her head and turned to look back at Lapis.

The first thing Lapis noticed was the girls eyes, for two reasons, actually. 

They were red and puffy, sunken in, and almost looked,  _dim._

The other reason Lapis noticed them was because they were _bright_ green. Of course, she had just described them as looking dim, but they were still bright.

It felt as though they were supposed to be ever brighter. That’s, why she described them as dim.

They managed to be a brighter green than Lapis had ever seen before and still managed to appear gloomy, and yet, despite this, still seemed to carry a sort of innocence. They looked frightened and yet full of wonder at the same time.

This made Lapis’ heart actually _ache_ , and yet she couldn’t explain why.

She noticed another thing though. In front of those green eyes, were the girls glasses. A lense cracked, the other missing. A temple twisted.

This sight made Lapis  _mad._

Lapis viewed herself as a jerk, as most other kids did, but despite this, there was nothing she hated more then bullies. 

“What happened?”

”I t-tripped. I’m fine.”

“No offense, but I call bull. That looks intentionally done.”

”I-it’s nothing. I tripped, r..really.”

Lapis continued to stare at the girls eyes, in turn making the girl somewhat squeamish. 

Lapis placed her hand on the girls shoulder once more.

”Can you just, please tell me who did this?” 

The girls brows furrowed. She looked conflicted.

Lapis didn’t back down though, continuing to stare at the girl, keeping her hand placed on the girls shoulder as if to say “I care”.

Eventually the blonde gave in, mumbling something under her breath.

”I-it was A..Aquamarine.”

Lapis’ eyed flickered at hearing this.

Of  _course_ it had to be the biggest, most self centered preppy piece of garbage this school had to offer. She didn’t know why she was surprised.

“What’s your name.”

The girls eyes widened, before quickly looking down. She turned her head away before once again mumbling.

”I..it’s Peridot.”

”Lapis.”

Lapis moved her hand onto Peridot’s hand, giving a light squeeze before standing up. 

Peridot looked up, carrying a worried and unsure look. 

“W-what are you doing?”

”I’m gonna pay Aquamarine a little visit.”

”NO...no, p-please don’t...”

Lapis looked over towards the tree, where Aquamarine most likely sat surrounded by other preppy followers.

”Well I’m not gonna let her treat you like garbage again.”

”Lapis, don’t do anything, p-please. I may be new here but I know how bullies work. It’ll only get worse if you do something...”

”That’s the thing, you’re new. It’s not just that she doesn’t have a reason to bully you, but you also don’t know anything about me.”

Lapis looked back down at Peridot.

”Aquamarine would be even crazier than me if she were to not listen to the advice I’m about to give her.”

Peridot looked away again, the same conflicted look appearing once again. 

“Why, are you doing this.”

”What do you mean.”

”Helping me. No one ever gave me even a second glance in my old school. Why are you any different.”

Lapis smirked.

”I guess I just like being different.”

Lapis could’ve sworn she saw the corners of Peridot’s mouth twitch. Peridot sighed.

”Y-you’re not gonna h-hit her are you?”

”Nah, she’s not even worth getting my knuckles swollen. Maybe if she continues though.”

Peridot looked down and pursed her lips.

”I promise.”

She looked back up at Lapis. Lapis offered her a hand, to which Peridot took and was hoisted up to her feet.

”Let’s go pay her a visit, yeah?”

Lapis dragged Peridot with her over to the tree.

 

 

The two slowed down as they got closer to the tree, Peridot seemingly getting more antsy as they did. Lapis looked over at her.

”It’ll be fine, trust me.”

Peridot only looked at her, before looking back down at her feet as they came closer.

The two walked around the tree to see Aquamarine surrounded by other preppys, just as Lapis had figured.

Aquamarine spotted the two and gave Lapis a quizzical expression.

”Oh! If it isn’t Mrs Lazuli. What’s this, have you brought me something? I’ll have you know I already threw  _that_  thing away.”

Peridot shuffled nervously.

”Actually, you can shut your obnoxious trap, Aquamarine. I don’t know who the hell you think you are to make you feel you can just treat others underneath your standards like garbage.”

Aquamarine raised her eyebrows, turning her head to look at the Topaz twins. 

Lapis’ skin began to boil just from being in the presence of Aquamarine.

”And I don’t know who  _you_ are to think you can talk down to  _me_.”

“I talk down to you because you’re a literal three feet shorter than me. If I didn’t know any better I’d still mistake you as a kindergartner.”

 _This_ wiped the ugly grin off of Aquamarines face. Shame it didn’t fix it though.

”Look, Lazuli. I don’t know what exactly you think you’re doing, but I don’t particularly care for it.”

”I don’t particularly care for a lot of things, yet her I am, standing in front of the thing I care for the  _least.”_

 _“You bitch_.”

”Hey, language Aquamarine.”

”You’re really starting to tick me off Lazuli.”

Lapis was about to say something else before Peridot tightened her grip on Lapis’ hand.

”Look. Stay the hell away from Peridot. You do that, then we won’t have to face each other again.”

Aquamarine’s face grew a twisted smile.

”Aww, is Lapis actually capable of having feelings after all? How cute. And to think, they’re for something so...  _pitiful._ ”

Lapis grit her teeth, and if it weren’t for the fact she was holding Peridot’s hand with her good hand, she’d of decked Aquamarine in the face by now.

”Who gives a shit if I have feelings and if they’re for Peridot. I’ve only just met her and I know she’s got a better personality than the garbage you offer.”

Peridot looked down slightly red-faced.

”Stay away from Peridot, or I won’t hold back next time.”

”Hm. I’ll think about it. Give me a good reason.”

”You won’t have to deal with me anymore. I’ll leave you alone.”

”Are you saying you won’t defend anyone else who stands in my way?”

Lapis looked down at Peridot, who was still looking down at the ground, kicking pebbles back and forth.

Lapis figured if she could save one person obviously un-deserving of Aquamarines bullshit, that maybe it was worth it. It was either that or she’d be dealing with the Topaz twins regularly again.

She bit her tongue.

”Fine. Yeah.”

Peridot looked up at this, surprised.

Aquamarine rolled her eyes. 

“Whatever water witch. Have fun with your only friend. But if you stop me next time you can expect me to go back on this aswell.”

”Yeah? And if you bother Peridot again I’ll knock another one of your pretty little teeth out.”

Aquamarine growled. “Leave before I reconsider.”

Lapis took it as a win and pulled Peridot away from the tree with her, peering back at Aquamarine as she did. Aquamarine had gone back to gossiping and talking to the other preps in her circle. Lapis turned her attention to the Topaz twins, both having their eyes locked on Lapis as they walked away. She looked back ahead of her and continued walking.

The two walked back to the sign and plopped back down. Peridot turned to look at Lapis almost instantly.

”Thank you.”

”Eh, it’s nothin’.”

”N-no, it isn’t “nothin’.””

Lapis only raised her eyebrow.

”L-look. No one’s ever stood up for me like that before. No ones even talked to me other then to pick on me even. I don’t know why you did or why you chose to care but just... thank you.”

Lapis smiled.

The two turned their heads to look at the road, watching cars go by until the teachers called out to all the students that it was time to head back inside. 

 

 

The two would continue going back to that spot, and from then on, Lapis’ spot wasn’t her spot anymore. Instead, her spot was behind the park sign. Instead, her spot was with Peridot.

_I guess it’s not so bad having someone to call a friend. Someone to look out for. It’s different._


	2. High School: Anatomy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lapis and Peridot make their way to their first period class.

Lapis walked inside, stomping her boots and putting a hand through her hair, ridding both of any snow, before walking further into the school.

Boots, ripped skinny jeans, flannel, and a rather thin (but stylish) leather jacket. Lapis didn’t care that she’d hate herself for the lack of thicker clothing, allowing herself to be nipped by the cold air either inside or outside the building. Atleast she looked good (for her standards, anyways).

Lapis turned left and walked past the main office and towards the ramped hallway, glancing to see if anyone would be sat inside. Unsurprisingly, Lapis saw Aquamarine sat on one of the chairs, most likely waiting to be called into the principals office for doing something stupid.

Aquamarine glanced up at Lapis as if she had known Lapis would be watching, sporting a smug grin and giving a wink before looking back down at her phone. Lapis subconsciously growled in response.

Lapis kept walking until she stood at the top of the small ramp, leaning against the railing to wait.

Other students began appearing and soon the hallways were filled, meaning the buses had just released the rest of the kids. Lapis sighed and looked down at her phone, absentmindedly playing some clicker game Steven had gotten her into.

She played the game for a few minutes until she caught blonde in her peripheral and looked over, to see a short blonde sporting an eager grin coming towards her.

”Hi Lapis!”

”Hey. You look happy today.”

”Of course I am, it’s Monday!”

Lapis rolled her eyes. “Something only you could be happy about, figures.”

”Pfft, just because it’s Monday doesn’t mean it’s a bad day. After all, I get to see my best friend!”

Lapis raised an eyebrow.

”Oh? I didn’t know you had any friends. I’m glad you look forward to seeing whoever it is though.”

Peridot gave her a small push with her free hand.

”Oh, hush it, you know well it’s you I’m talking about.”

”Eh, maybe. You see me almost everyday anyways.”

”Well school is different. I don’t need to plan out activities or schedule ahead of time, I just get to see you throughout the day anyways!”

”You act like you do anything other then sit at your computer playing games.”

Peridot faked being offended.

”Gasp! I’ll have you know I study quite regularly, something you should probably do yourself.”

“I’m gonna roll you down the ramp.”

”You wouldn’t. You care about me too much.”

Lapis didn’t say anything and only cocked an eyebrow. The two stood in shared silence for a moment before Peridot started getting a little antsy.

”R-right?”

Lapis rolled her eyes and let out a soft chuckle.

”Yeah yeah, of course I do you dork. C’mon, we gotta start heading to class.”

Peridot relaxed. “Okay.” 

Then she looked up. “Wait, you’re actually  _willing_ to head to class and be in time? What did you do with the real Lazuli?”

Lapis looked over as the two started walking down the ramp to head towards their class.

”We’re still on the ramp you know.”

”So it  _IS_ you. Someone must have gotten to bed a lot earlier then usual if you’re actually ready to get to class for once.”

”Pfft, nah. I’m just saving you from being worried about your ‘perfect attendance’.”

The two laughed as they walked past the main office. Lapis looked back over at Aquamarine who still sat inside, only rolling her eyes as the two girls passed.

Lapis was thankful for this. For Peridot.

The two were honestly, very different. 

Lazy, artistic, and grungy Lapis.

Neatfreak, techsavy, nerdy Peridot.

Still, the two fit together well, and Lapis didn’t even mind the looks they’d still occasionally get. Two loners (albeit for different reasons), who were perfectly intent with just having each other. It was nice. Lapis was thankful to be able to call Peridot a friend.

Their banter, their inside jokes. Their little spot at the ramp. Lapis was thankful they had so many classes together (even if it meant more rambling from Peridot, something she also, wouldn’t trade).

Honestly, Lapis had no idea why she stood up for and decided to talk to Peridot all the way back in fifth grade, but, never once would she truly question it. 

She still didn’t know. She didn’t  _need_ to know. Had she not, she’d probably be an even bigger mess than she is now, and, she also wouldn’t have Peridot in her life.

Lapis often found herself relying on the energy of the shorter girl to help her make it through the day. The energetic, optimistic, Peridot.

To many, it would be annoying (honestly, she had used to find it annoying herself), but to Lapis, is was something she couldn’t help but love. Something only describable as: Purely and simply, Peridot.

Seeing and being around Peridot was the best part of the day, and considering how easy it was to feel dead in the morning, she was glad back when school started to have found that they had first period together. Sure, Lapis didn’t get much done, but, atleast she was awake?

“Did you get the homework done?”

Lapis’ inner thoughts stopped with the sudden question. She turned and looked down at Peridot. She blinked.

”We had homework?”

Peridot rolled her eyes and started digging through her binder as the two walked, digging through a folder before pulling out a packet.

”Yes, Laz. It looked like this, remember getting it?”

Lapis took the paper from Peridot and stared at the paper, her eyes wandering over the neatly printed answers and occasional doodle of an alien on the packet of paper.

Did she remember getting it? No, not really.

”Eh.”

”Eh?”

”I mean yeah I guess I remember the topic being talked about in class, and I’m sure I have it but-“

”But-eh?”

”Eh-xactly”

Peridot gave Lapis a light shove and grabbed her paper back. Lapis giggled knowing full well that Peridot enjoyed the joke but would refrain from acknowledging it.

”Well, I’ll try to help you get atleast the front page done, let’s hurry up and get to class.”

Lapis followed the short blonde as she seemingly switched it into overdrive, speeding through and dodging everyone else in the halls as if they weren’t there. Lapis, instead of doing the same, bumped into almost every single person, mumbling a “I’m sorry” every time she felt herself hit something. She most definitely said sorry to a few lockers but, eh.

Eventually, Lapis made her way into the science wing, seeing the blonde impatiently waiting for her in the doorway of the classroom.

Lapis winked, Peridot only rolling her eyes before entering the classroom, Lapis behind her.

”God you're slow.”

”Ain’t my fault someone’s able to clear the hallways without someone even managing to graze their shoulder.”

”I simply prefer to get to class on time as opposed to waiting for the endless amount of kids to move that never clear the hallways.”

”Yeah yeah, I know. ‘Perfect attendance.’”

The two sat at their table in the back right corner, Peridot quickly pulling out the homework from her neatly managed binder, waiting for Lapis to pull hers from her barely intact binder containing a mix-match of sheets from different classes. 

The two worked silently and quickly, only stopping once or twice so that Peridot could explain something. The bell rung right as Lapis finished the last question, and got up and walked to the front to put both sheets in the basket and returned back to her seat.

A couple more minutes passed before the bell rung again, the last few students scrambling in before the speakers turned on, a voice telling everyone to kindly stand for the pledge, getting a groan of students heard across the entirety of the school as every student barely managed to push themselves up from their seat.

The one exception to that of course, being Peridot, who quickly rose to stand, gladly reciting the pledge along with the the person over speaker.

Lapis only smiled.

As the pledge ended and everyone sat back down, Lapis gave a quick nudge to Peridot.

”I always found it interesting you still bothered to say the pledge. I can guarantee you no one else does.”

”Old habits, I guess.”

”They should get you to say it over the speaker, it’d certainly bring a bit more life to it.”

”Oh shush, Lazuli, no one needs my nasally voice shouting over intercom.”

The two laughed before being glared at by the teacher, quieting, as the teacher informed the class they would be watching a video today on reproduction and why “ _sex matters_ ”. Of course, all this did was elicit laughter from the left side of the room, which was almost entirely guys. 

Lapis, in hearing this, stretched, leaned back in her chair, and propped her feet up on the table.

Then, she groaned, seeing that the teacher was now handing out a packet to be filled out while  _watching_ the video. She leaned back up as the teacher gave their table the papers, Peridot reaching over to grab both.

”Don’t worry about it Laz, you can take a nap, I’ll do some of it for you.”

Lapis perked up at this newfound news, and returned to her position from before, shuffling a bit as to get comfy.

She pulled her hood up and shoved her hands in her pockets, quietly mumbling “My hero” into her jacket before dosing off.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess what this “fic” will be is a bunch of short stories from different times. I would continue manhunt but quite like being able to have more freedom with what I’m writing.
> 
> Manhunts all planned, where with Recess, i can just write whatever I think of, without worrying of the ending, as it doesn’t have one. Just nicer I guess.
> 
> I’ll make writing Manhunt my New Years Resolution :p


	3. High School: Snowed In (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lapis and Peridot walk home after school as the weather picks up.

The two walked out of the building in stride, happy to be free from the prison that is school, and not willing to let the long day effect their start of the weekend.

Nine lengthy periods, 3 tests and an exam, a botched cafeteria lunch, a particularly lengthy assembly in the school auditorium, and an after school swim meet. Lapis didn’t think it’d ever end but, to her surprise, it had, and now she and Peridot were walking to her house like they always did.

Speaking of...

Lapis looked down at the blonde to her left.

“You sure you don’t want to head to your house quick and grab some extra clothes? You said you wanted to stay this week right?”

“Yes I did, and plan on it, but, no ones home like usual and I don’t care to dig through my backpack to find my key. I’ll just steal some of your clothes like I always do.”

“My clothes are like two-sizes too-big for you.”

“All the more room to stretch in.”

Lapis rolled her eyes and looked ahead through all the streets, albeit she couldn’t look very far. Visibility was low, with the fact the snow was starting to pick up.

“We probably should’ve taken the bus.”

“But we didn’t get passes, we wouldn’t even be able to ride the after school buses.”

“Well yeah, but we didn’t get one because it wasn’t bad out. It looks like it’s picking up.”

“Hm. I guess it does seem to be getting worse. Maybe we should get a pass just in case next time. I blame you either way.”

“Wow. How’s that fair.”

“You insisted we walk today.”

“No, I  _suggested_ we walk. It was nice. Besides, you’re supposed to be the voice of reason, what happened to that.”

”Okay okay, fine. I blame you _partly._ The rest of the blame can go to the weather channel, who didn’t say anything about snow picking up or lack of visibility.”

”You of all people should know that the weather isn’t always right. We also live near a huge ass body of water.”

”Oh shut it Lazuli, before I push you into a snow bank.”

”You know very well that if you did that I’d pull you in with me.”

”Hm.”

The two walked in silence for a while, Peridot seemingly deep in thought.

Lapis couldn’t help but notice all the times she’d do this. Tune out everything so that she could in turn focus on everything else. Seemingly taking time to analyze the situation and figure out what would be the best action to take next.

Just another one of the many traits she loved about her best friend. 

At one point she had found it annoying. Never failing to realize how much of a damper it put on conversations as they seemingly halted until her brain calculated the perfect response. Now though, it didn’t bother her, and she was fully content with giving the small nerd all the time she needed.

She watched Peridot look left and right, back and forth as they’d switch and cross streets, seemingly scoping out something of interest. Eventually, after the two crossed yet another street, she finally perked back up.

“Perfect!”

And with that, Lapis found herself sitting in a large snowbank.

Lapis lay for a moment, taking in her new seat for what it was: cold, wet, and uncomfortable for the sake that her “seat” was crawling up her shirt.

Peridot released a nasally laugh, and while Lapis would normally love to hear it, and let it go for as long as it could...

It was stopped short as she reached up, grabbing the small girls wrist and tugging her into the snow with her, a satisfying “ploof” as she landed, sending the newest layer of snow up into the air.

Lapis released a hearty laugh of her own as Peridot rolled over, wiping the snow from her face.

”I guess I should’ve seen that coming.”

”I  _did_ warn you.”

The two sat in the snow for a little while, tossing snow on each other as if to bury one another completely. Eventually they both realized it was dumb to continue doing it as they were already cold and still had a long walk to Lapis’ home. They both stood up, wiping off the snow that decided to cling to their clothing. 

The two continued walking, once more returning to a pleasant silence, watching as the snow covered what small tracks were visible on the sidewalk. 

Lapis took the time to internally debate on what they’d do over the week. She had no doubt they’d rewatch most of CPH. Maybe a movie or two aswell. Peridot would probably play some game on her phone, explaining what the point was as Lapis would watch intently, not fully taking in whatever was being said, but listening either way.

This is what they usually did on the weekends. It wasn’t all that much, and most would probably get sick of doing the same things every week, but, it was what they  _always_ did.  _Their_ routine.  _Their_ way of relaxing after a long school week. It didn’t matter if it wasn’t particularly interesting. What mattered is that they had the time to hang out with one another and be thankful.

She heard Peridot sniffle and looked over.

Peridot was shrunken into herself, holding herself and rubbing her arms to gain warmth. She looked tired. 

“Hey, you doing alright.”

”Splendid. Fantastic.”

She looked up.

“Lapis I genuinely can’t feel my toes.”

Lapis couldn’t help but snort at the comment, moving her hands to block her face as if it would help hide the fact her cheeks were darkening in color due to the noise. It probably wasn’t noticable, though, with the cold biting their faces harshly as they walked against it.

”I take the face-full of snow didn’t do you much good, huh?”

”It definitely reinforced the idea that I should never take what you say with a grain of salt.”

The two laughed, before slowing to a stop. Lapis set her bag on the ground and removed her coat.

”W-what are you doing, you’re gonna let the cold kill you by taking that off.”

”Eh, that’s the best scenario. I’m taking it off so  _you_ don’t keel over from hypothermia, now drop your bag so you can put this on.”

Peridot rolled her eyes, not bothering to argue a battle she knew she wouldn’t be winning, and dropped her bag. Lapis helped her put on the jacket before grabbing both her and Peridots bags.

”Aren't you cold?”

”A little, but it ain’t intolerable.”

Peridot perked an eyebrow.

”Peri, I swim in the winter. You get used to being cold.”

Lapis visibly shivered.

”M-hm. R-right. I believe you entirely.”

”I’ll push you into another snow bank.”

”And then I’ll pull you into it with me.”

Lapis blew a raspberry at Peridot, who sported a smug grin.

Lapis looked ahead once more, finding that the visibility was even poorer than before. It seemed like the small city they resided in was right in the middle of a storm, and with how fast snow was picking up she wondered if they’d actually be snowed in over the weekend, not that the two would do anything but sit in her room all week.

Lapis looked again at the small blonde, who continued shivering but seemed to be doing slightly better. 

“You really oughta wear more than just a hoodie.”

”You’re one to talk, you wear skinny jeans and tank tops year round.”

”Okay fine, you got me there, but atleast I’m smart enough to keep a coat in my locker just in case.”

”Just in case you need to give it to me and ridicule my clothing choice?”

”Sounds like someone’s getting a little heated.”

Peridot rolled her eyes.

”...or should I say freezing?”

Peridot glared at her.

”Really?”

Lapis laughed.

Peridot mumbled.

”Hm?”

Reaching down and grabbing a fist full of snow, she yelled. ”I said ‘WOW, THANKS.’”

And with a very dramatic throw Lapis’s face was now very cold. 

She wiped it off and looked at Peridot, who held a very smug expression.

A smug expression that dissipated as soon as Lapis reached down to grab a couple handfuls of snow herself.

Peridot put her hands up and pleaded.

”N-no wait please, I’m sorry!”

Lapis took a step forward, keeping eye contact with the small gremlin.

Peridot fell into herself and began spewing a thousand words a second from behind her collar. She closed her eyes and fell silent once Lapis almost closed the gap between them completely.

Nothing happened for a moment.

Peridot opened an eye and peered up from behind the collar of her jacket only to have a snowball very lightly shoved into her face, followed by a quick flick to the nose.

She stomped as she wiped the snow from her face, Lapis blowing another raspberry as she did. After a second the two resumed walking once more.

”I don’t know how I put up with you.”

”I wonder that myself too sometimes.”

”Here I thought you wanted me to be warmer.”

“Here I thought you’d know better than to throw a snowball at me and expect to get away with it.”

Peridot only sniffled in response.

”You best not be getting sick on me or else you’re sleeping on the floor, I don’t want a snot-covered pillow.”

”How sweet of you. If I didn’t know any better I’d throw another snowball at you, but I also don’t want any more ice up my nose.”

“Oh hush your complaining, you know well that I could’ve done more than just shove one snowball into your face. You started it this time too. Both times actually.”

Peridot shuddered in rememberance of the snow fights in years past. She sighed.

”I’m just happy we’re almost to your house.”

Lapis couldn’t exactly see with the heavy amount of snow coming down but with the houses near them she figured they had about a block left.

”Race you to the house?”

”Lapis I cant breath through my nose, you expect me to run?”

“Oh come on it’s not that far, plus, we’ll get there faster.”

Peridot squinted ahead before looking back at Lapis. Lapis wiggled her eyebrows.

”I don’t think it’d be safe for you to run while wearing both of our backpacks.”

”You’re just making excuses. Wearing both backpacks means I have double the cushion if I slip.”

“I’d argue that said protection will do you no good if your head hits the sidewalk but I know you well enough to say there’s nothing in there.”

Lapis knocked on her forehead. “Damn right. So, race ya?”

Peridot rolled her eyes. “Fine, sure. Count down from three?”

Lapis nodded and once the two crossed the street, the two planted a foot at the edge of the block. With a nod to each other they began counting down from three together, and once they both said zero, the two began sprinting down the block towards Lapis’s house at the corner.

For the most part the race was pretty steady, but as expected Peridot eventually began to slow down, while Lapis continued with her set speed and took lead. A few feet from the steps of her front porch she slowed down to a stop, turning around to see Peridot about a good ten feet away, slowing down almost completely as she knew Lapis already won.

Peridot sniffled and stopped to regain her breath once she got to the steps. “I don’t know why I agreed when I already knew you’d win.”

”Me neither. What’s my prize?”

Peridot looked up. “Another snow ball to the face?”

”Would you like to receive one of your own?”

The two laughed and began to head up the steps of the front porch. Lapis began pulling out her keys as she noticed the empty driveway. She unlocked the door and slid the key back into her pocket.

“Looks like we’ll be home alone for a bit. Want some cocoa?”

Peridot sniffled. “Do you need to ask?”

And with that the two walked inside the cold home, ready for a weekend of binge watching terrible rom-coms and an inevitability empty box of hot chocolate mix.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so I started this chapter around a month ago give or take, and just never got around to finishing it.
> 
> As you’ll notice this is Snowed In 1, because it’ll be a 2 parter at the least. I would’ve made it one biiiig chapter but knowing me it would’ve been spring by the time I got it out lol. 
> 
> I hope everyone enjoys this little short story and that everyone had a good holiday break!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, hope you enjoyed this short little story.
> 
> Obviously this isn’t a new chapter of Manhunt, but I wanted to write something.
> 
> I think part of the reason I haven’t written any new chapters is because I burned myself out by putting out so many chapters so quickly. I have the whole story planned out and even know how the next one will start, I just haven’t written it yet.
> 
> It’s like I have a type of writers block or something.
> 
> Nonetheless, I’ve had this idea in my head for a little while and figured it’d be a good way to get back into the swing of things. Maybe I’ll do more with this one day, who knows.


End file.
